


Three Sundays

by Hokuto



Category: Transformers: Rescue Bots
Genre: Family, Gen, Spies & Secret Agents, Storytelling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-07
Updated: 2017-04-07
Packaged: 2018-10-14 07:31:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,405
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10531794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hokuto/pseuds/Hokuto
Summary: ... with the Burns and 'bots family.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [raininshadows](https://archiveofourown.org/users/raininshadows/gifts).



> I really love this show and your prompts - hope you enjoy this!

**_A Night at the Opera_ **

"- and bam! Ice cream everywhere!" Blades flung his arms out and nearly smacked Boulder in the face.

Cody hid his laugh behind a buttered roll and said, "Oh, no! How long did it take to clean it all up?"

"A lot longer than I wanted to spend," Dani said, sighing. "We did catch the rogue sweeper, at least... I sure learned my lesson, though - no more messy snacks when we're on patrol with Quickshadow!"

"Sounds like someone takes after Kade more than they want to admit," said Heatwave.

"At any rate," Chief Burns said hastily, before Dani could defend the honor of her snacking habits, "we're glad you could join us here this weekend, Quickshadow. So, everything's going smoothly in Faxian? How do you like working with a team long-term?"

Quickshadow hummed, leaning back and resting her chin in one hand. "Well, it's certainly taken some getting used to," she said. "One doesn't go from years of solo missions to regular teamwork without a few adjustments along the way, you know. It requires a whole new approach to operations, rethinking old habits - and I still have the odd spot of trouble remembering that I've always got back-up now. For example, that night at the opera house - do you recall the incident, Blades?"

"How could I forget?" Blades shuddered. "All those beautiful costumes, just ruined... Why'd you have to go and bring it up now?"

"Now that sounds like a story we all need to hear," Heatwave said, trying not to grin.

"Actually, I'm with Blades on this one," Dani said. "That - really wasn't our finest moment, I'd rather not talk about it. Quit hogging and pass the casserole, Kade, it's not like you've been living off street food for the last five days because _someone_ ruined the kitchen trying to make cupcakes. That he can't even eat."

"I'm a very good baker normally! That oven had a bug, I just know it. And I thought you liked the street food."

"Well, yeah, but not five days in a row!"

"I'll respect your wishes, then," Quickshadow said, "but it did remind me of another mission from my solo days, if anyone's interested..."

"Yes, spy story!"

"Yes, please!"

"Please, go ahead," the chief said, and Kade and Cody high-fived each other.

"All right, then," Quickshadow said, and she leaned forward. "I was going by the code name Silver Bolt, investigating suspicious activity at an opera house in Paris. Deep undercover, as you might imagine..."

* * *

She hadn't moved under her own power in three days. Not so much as a twitch of her gearshaft. She'd been briefed on the long hours that theatre companies worked, but pre-mission intel had missed or been compiled before security cameras being installed all over the Opera House, including the prop storage areas. From what she'd overheard, the management had been on high alert since the first incident; they didn't want any repeats of "the Daaé business," whatever _that_ had entailed. She assumed that it hadn't been the Minicon she'd spotted darting around the ropes and rafters above the stage, however.

Cursed little thing. Thanks to strategically placed canvas - and a false French front plate as back-up - it hadn't recognized her scanned form as an Autobot yet, but she was paralyzed by the need to remain undercover, even as the Minicon wreaked havoc. Just last night it had done something to the pulley system for the scenery flats and one poor sod had gotten his arm broken. The stagehands were always whispering that it was just a matter of time before someone died.

A prop car. Really, that had been the best cover the Prime could manage? At least if she'd been a prop automaton or similar, she could have passed off a slight change in position as gravity or loose gears or some such. This inability to act in the face of danger was driving her mad.

Mechanical skittering overhead. The Minicon. The wretch was too small and too fast for the primitive cameras to pick up more than a blur, alas, and it was clever enough to stay out of their field of vision. Oh, if only she'd found some other way to infiltrate the theatre!

The tiny red light on the camera behind her flickered wildly, then blinked out, and a satisfied chitter drifted down.

For the smallest of instants her spark quivered, and then she steeled herself and reassessed her plan. So the Minicon had chosen her as the target for its next bit of mischief, had it? And it had realized it needed to take out the cameras to continue. Very well, she could work with that. She'd be the bait, and when the cameras were all out and it came close enough...

A second camera's power light disappeared just as she subtly angled her left sideview mirror to watch it. Good, good - only one more to go. More skittering abover her, then silence. The light of the third camera wavered, then steadied, and a very rude sequence of beeps sputtered through the air.

She waited.

A round crescent of metal glimmered faintly in the prop room's diffuse light. Not quite the shape of a Cyclone, but rather similar. She'd have to move fast.

Golden sparks flew above the camera, and its power light vanished. The time had come.

The Minicon bounded down from the ceiling and rolled around her, chittering. Debating what it was going to do to cause maximum mayhem at the Opera House with an expensive - and more importantly, _borrowed_ \- prop. Vulgar graffiti? Broken lights? Hide valuable equipment in her boot? At last it stopped and unfolded itself in front of her, and the armor on one armor retracted to reveal a wicked little drill, already spinning up with an unpleasant whine. The Minicon leaped onto her hood, advancing towards her windshield -

She transformed in a flashing whirl, grabbing the startled little 'con and immobilizing it in a chokehold while it buzzed and cursed at her.

"That's the end of your little haunting spree, I'm afraid," she said...

* * *

"And then what? How'd you deal with it?" Cody asked, his little face bright with excitement.

Quickshadow hesitated, then said, "I made sure it was properly taken care of and couldn't bother the Opera House or its employees again. And, lucky for me, after another rehearsal or two, the director decided I took up too much of the stage, so I was free to go at last."

"Aww..."

He might be disappointed, but in Quickshadow's opinion, some aspects of special operations just weren't for young human ears.

**_Hide and Seek, Lost and Found_ **

Heatwave was lounging against the wall when Boulder rolled through the bridge with Graham. "You're early this week," he said, straightening up.

Graham swung out of Boulder's cabin and said, "Unfortunately, we have to leave early, too, so I thought we should show up as soon as we could to get as much family time in as possible."

"We have a new crew of workers coming from Faxian this afternoon to help us build the town!" Boulder said. "It's very exciting. Graham and I already laid out a design and survey markers for most of the central areas, but we'll start laying the foundations soon once we have more people and 'bots to help."

"Yeah, yeah, sounds great."

"I didn't call ahead to say we'd be early," Graham said; he looked around the bridge room, but no one else was waiting. "What are you doing down here?"

"Me and Chase were on the job at the natural history museum, dug up something we knew you'd like. Figured I'd try and catch you two before the rush."

"Uh-huh," said Graham. _Definitely not because you miss us or anything_ was the kind of thought he usually kept to himself, but he was pretty sure it was a big factor. "So, what'd you guys find?"

"Upstairs."

Graham exchanged glances with Boulder, but they followed Heatwave up to the firehouse. Cody and Dad were still in the kitchen, cooking, though the door was open; Cody shouted a hello over the noise of the mixer and Dad waved with an oven mitt on his hand, but Heatwave led them outside, where a big table was set up for everyone to eat and enjoy the weather while it was still good. Instead of being set with plates and napkins, however, it was covered with - Graham squinted - architectural plans? Old, yellowing ones, chipped at the edges.

"This is it," Heatwave said proudly.

"Uh - great, but what exactly is 'it'?"

Boulder bent over to examine the charts; a moment later, he exclaimed, "No way! Graham, it's the original schematics for some of the old experimental laboratories - the ones that were lost years ago and never digitized."

"Seriously?" Graham pushed his glasses up and took one of the plans to get a better look, handling the fragile paper with care. Half the schematic he recognized as the original plans for the BLF storage; the other half... He'd had no idea some of those rooms existed. "Oh, wow. This is incredible! Imagine everything we can learn from these - how much changed during construction, how many facilities were locked up and lost, what people back then thought they would need, why some buildings were built where they are..."

"They could even help us with our project," Boulder said. "How'd you find them, Heatwave?"

"Funny story..."

* * *

When the alarm went off for the fifth time that night, Heatwave said, "No point waking up the Chief and Kade again for a bunch of raccoons. We'll just check it out ourselves."

Chase reluctantly agreed, but only after writing a note to let Chief Burns know where and why'd they gone.

When they reached the museum, though, there was no sign of anyone or anything that could have tripped the alarms, and the yawning night watchwoman was as baffled as they were. "We get a prankster now and then," she said, "but usually it's just kids on a dare or someone who forgot something on a field trip, and they give up after a try or two. Five times? Gotta be a record - or something serious."

Heatwave looked over the building. No carelessly open windows or doors, not a trace of smoke - what the heck could be setting off the alarms? "Okay, here's what we'll do," he said. "Chase, you go right, look for any clues. I'll check the left, and Ms., uh -"

"Khan."

"- Ms. Khan, you keep an eye on things out here in front. We'll meet around back with whatever we find."

The left side turned out to be a bust. Not even a little raccoon footprint in the soft mulch around the hedges, let alone any indication of a break-in. Maybe it was just a bug in the new security system, and it could be Doc Greene's problem when he woke up. Heatwave was about to round the back corner to meet Chase when his comm activated, and Chase said, "Heatwave? I believe I have found something."

"Be there in a sec."

He rounded the corner and gave the back of the building a quick check - just as undisturbed as everywhere else - then found Chase crouching beneath one of the museum's large golden-framed windows. He started to ask what Chase had found, but Chase made a "hush" motion and pointed to the window.

All right. Heatwave peeked through one of the panes and saw a flicker of light among the exhibits. A flicker that definitely shouldn't be there, but also somehow familiar - wait. "Is that _Elma_?"

"I believe so," Chase whispered.

"What's she doing away from the training center?"

"Perhaps she is not our holographic Elma," Chase said, "but the ghost of the real -"

"Yeah, I don't think so." The hologram was bent over a glass case, as if inspecting it; then it flickered and reappeared over a different case. "It's like she's - looking for something? Come on, let's go back to the front and catch her at it, see what she has to say."

Ms. Khan let them in through the front doors, and they snuck through the museum until they reached the room where Elma was searching a geological exhibit. Heatwave stepped into the room while her back was to the door and said, "Elma, mind explaining yourself?"

The hologram jumped, but at least she didn't disappear. "Oh, dear. Guess I've been found out," she said, in her fussy little voice. "That security system is awfully sensitive. Even minor fluctuations in light levels can set it off!"

"So all those alarms have been you?" Heatwave asked.

"More to the point," said Chase, "how did you transport yourself from the training center to the museum? And why? We did not know you were capable of such a thing."

"I - well - it's not anything bad, I swear!" Elma twisted her hands together. "I just remembered - I never told anyone where I hid people's things from the time capsule. It kept bothering me and bothering me, and I wanted to find them so I could return them to the town, but - well -"

"I do not understand. Did you hide them in a well? There are no wells in this museum."

Elma blinked.

"You don't remember where you hid them, either, do you?" Heatwave said. "You have Elma's personality and everything Doc knew about her from public records, but something like hiding the time capsule's contents - obviously no one now could know about that, so it couldn't be programmed in."

"Yes, that's it, I'm afraid," Elma said. "But I'm sure that if I just reason it out carefully and keep looking, I'll find where I hid them, so please don't turn me in!"

Heatwave hesitated. On one hand, Elma being able to travel around the island and having that much mind of her own was the kind of thing Doc Greene needed to know, in case it interfered with running the training center or anything else. On the other hand - her first impulse had been to try to fix her own mistake.

"Okay, I'm in," he said. "As long as you don't turn jumping around Griffin Rock into a habit. Where do we start searching?"

* * *

"... took us another hour or two," Heatwave said, "but turned out Chase wasn't too far off the mark - the stuff from the time capsule was actually hidden in an old well that had just been closed off back then. Elma - the original doctor - had put some clues in the museum, just in case she forgot, so once we dug those up it was an easy find."

"That's incredible," Graham said. "And a little concerning. Are you sure Elma's still - uh, functioning correctly?"

Heatwave shrugged. "Seems to be. Doc Greene came over and ran some standard diagnostics, and she's been behaving pretty much like normal since then, besides laughing at some of Blurr's jokes. No trying to take over anything or play games, and she hasn't left the training center again, either. Anyway, we've been giving back as much of the stuff as we could, the rest is going to the library - but we thought you'd like to look at this stuff, first. Elma said they have to be copies, since the original plans would have been too valuable to bury, but with the original plans gone anyway, these must be pretty valuable."

"They really are." Graham put down the schematics he'd been looking at and picked up another piece of paper. Not plans; it looked more like an application. Or a - "Oh. Oh, wow. Heatwave, how closely did you look at all of these?"

"Not real close," Heatwave admitted. "Not my style. Why?"

"Because I'm reading a grant proposal from a certain Dr. Thaddeus Morocco for establishing a scientific research facility on Griffin Rock - and it's dated 1892..."

" _What_?"

**_Ready to Go_ **

"Are you _sure_ we're ready?" Boulder said.

"Well, we can go over the checklist one more time, if you want," Graham said. "You know how much I love checklists!"

"All right - uh, I know I left it around here somewhere..." Boulder picked up the vase of flowers, checked under the trivet, then pulled a chair away from the table and found the electronic clipboard on top of some EIS printouts from two months ago. He picked those up and handed them to Graham, saying, "We really need to start using those automatic filers Professor Baranova built for us. Okay, first item: ground bridge still in working order?"

"Check, Servo brought over Dad's apron for us this morning, no problems."

"Second item: emergency alert system activated?"

"Check!" Graham rolled his chair over to the dining room's main screen and called up the monitoring system. "We've got smoke detectors and water sprinklers in every building, even the ones still under construction. We have password protection and antivirus software in every piece of tech that could possibly be hacked, plus trackers in case anything goes missing unexpectedly. We have surveillance cameras outside all the labs, plus future business and government buildings. We have -" He magnified one of the dots on the screen. "- automated scarecrows? Boulder..."

"Oh, those don't have to be activated yet," Boulder said. "I just thought, when I'm not the only gardener in town, they'd be useful for protecting the farms and gardens from birds. And they also work as weather forecasters, so people can cover their plants against a frost in time, or make sure they don't over-water when a storm is coming - all kinds of things!"

"Sure, buddy. Let's see - perimeter security still isn't up, but we don't want that active yet, anyway, not until all the roads are finished. And for anything else - comm lines are clear, inventory says we're well stocked with first aid kits and suppressant foam and rope - pretty much everything we could need if we have to roll out. Anything else on the emergency sub-checklist?"

"Nope!" Boulder gave Graham a thumbs-up. "Third item: house cleaned?"

"Er - once I put these files back where they should be, check..."

"Fourth item: tour itinerary prepared?"

"Definitely check. I know we've been keeping them updated as we go, but I can't wait to show them all everything we've done in person." Graham spun around so he could look through the window, and Boulder glanced through it, too. Their house had an excellent view of the town: wide roads, spacious buildings - even the ones that were still half scaffolding - landing pads for flying 'bots and green space for humans... Everything they'd been able to think of that a community for Autobots and humans would need, all laid out and still growing every day.

Sometimes Boulder still couldn't quite believe it was real, even after all the work they'd done. Endless designing and redesigning as each of them came up with new features or necessities or geography that had to be dealt with, construction logistics, all the times they'd had to rush around making sure no outsiders stumbled on the site by accident or realized there was more to certain buildings than met the eye... But it was finally coming together.

He refocused his optics on the clipboard. "All right, last item: dinner cooked?"

The kitchen timer beeped.

"Partial check," Graham said, tucking the EIS statements under his arm and getting up to check the oven. "Still have to figure out what to do for dessert - it's times like these I miss having Blades around. I've never really been a baker."

"Don't worry, I asked him to make something," Boulder said. He stowed the clipboard in a desk drawer and followed Graham; they'd been careful, back when they were designing the houses, to make every room 'bot-accessible in some way. Especially the kitchens, since so many accidents happened there. "I think the bakers in Faxian have given him a lot of inspiration!"

"As long as it's not as spicy as those chili chocolate buns he made last time - no matter how funny Kade's face was." Graham donned his father's traditional apron and a pair of oven mitts, then took the pan of macaroni and cheese out of the oven. "Okay, if that's the whole list - finally ready to host our first family dinner away from Griffin Rock?"

Boulder took one last look around their house - clean, neat, tall ceilings and wide doors - and said, "I guess we are."

Whatever happened, he and Graham were prepared for anything - and that was just how they both liked it.


End file.
